The Path to Forgiveness
by Miranda le Ginger
Summary: Lightning is a knight; the best of the best. However, a tragedy that happened long ago has filtered into her life, making her cold and driven by revenge. Can she learn to forgive her past and embrace the future? The path to forgiveness is paved by stones; if you can overcome it, you gain acceptance, forgiveness, and maybe even love.
1. Chapter 1

AN: So, I had the idea for this story a couple of days ago and the idea would not leave me alone. I have been writing a bucketload of Dragon Age and Once Upon a Time fics and I thought it was high time to bring a FF one to the table. So, here is chapter one of my original Final Fantasy story!

Disclaimer: I do **not** own Final Fantasy whatsoever. Square Enix does.

"_When you forgive, you in no way change the past - but you sure do change the future."__  
__Bernard Meltzer_

_Claaang! _The sound of metal grating against metal echoed around the vast courtyard; a deeper thud sounded a heartbeat later. There was a pause from the onlookers as they watched the sole fighter standing motionless before the unconscious body of the other knight. After the brief pause, the victor slowly sheathed her silver blade; a hiss from the blade against the sheath made a soft noise until a click signaled that is was properly situated. The crowd erupted into loud and raucous cheers at a battle well fought and executed.

"Ladies and gents, it seems we have our winner! The winner of this year's Knight Games is…Ser Lightning Farron!" Applause ricocheted from the crowd back to the tall warrior still standing inside the ring. Her expression gave nothing away; neither approval nor disapproval marred her pale, alabaster face. For the second consecutive year, Lightning had taken home the gold. She was widely considered the best of the best, made even more impressive considering she was incredibly young, and a woman. The twenty-one year old had been crowned an official knight of Cocoon, one of the few women to gain that sacred honor. Females had been allowed to become knights for a number of years, but few were up to the test. Other than a beautiful brunette named Tifa Lockhart and a serious woman named Paine, Lightning was the only female knight on the record.

Lightning was renowned for not only her prowess with a blade and her finesse on the battlefield, but for her devastatingly good looks and cold personality. Many men had tried to woo her, but one glare from those ice-blue eyes cause them to rethink their decision. She was a general in the army, one of six and the only woman to boot. In fact, she was the first female to ever be granted the prestigious title. Her past was shrouded in tragedy; her parents had been murdered by a band of Pulsians when she was just fourteen. The young Farron had to step up to the plate to care for her little sister, Serah, who was two years her junior. So, the older Farron bottled up her grief and before you knew it, the once carefree girl had become the cold, emotionally distant woman that she was today.

The younger Lightning had refused help, working hard doing odd jobs. She made a promise to herself; become a knight, the greatest of them all in order to support her sister and avenge her parents. So when she was not working, she was acclimating herself to a sword. Her father, long before he had married their mother and had the two sisters, commanded the army as the Commander. However, he left the high status and life of a knight behind in order to be there for his young family. He had put his armor and sword up in storage, sometimes pulling the outfit out and reminiscing over the glory days. It was this ensemble that young Lightning donned, beginning her training to be a knight. When she turned sixteen, she sent in a request to join the young shields (knights in training, as they were called) in order to achieve her goal.

The trainer, Ser Cid, was intrigued by the girl. He had battled alongside Farron Sr, and had felt great sorrow at his and his wife's untimely passing. He recognized the kindred spirit in Farron's eldest daughter; she was a fighter, born and bred. So, despite the other trainers' protests, he accepted the girl under his wing and she started the path that would shape her future. Lightning trained for two long, arduous years. She performed spectacularly, defeating every opponent and decimating all the tasks that came her way. When it came time for the knighting, she was the top of her class. At age eighteen, Lightning had become a glorified knight.

The rest, as they say, is history. She fought her way up the ladder and became the general she know was. Her sister, now nineteen, was a beautiful young woman destined for life as a housewife. She possessed all the abilities a young lady should; ones her sister greatly lacked. She was an extraordinary cook, polite little thing and could charm the armor off of the young knights that swooned over her. One such man, named Snow, was smitten by the youngest Farron. Which was a whole other problem for Lightning to deal with…

Lightning finally exited the battle site, largely ignoring the shouts of praise and congratulations shot her way. She did not even pay any heed to the poor opponent she had so soundly beaten; he was being helped up by some of his young students. She took long strides, passing by her fellow knights that were standing unsurprised at the outcome. Shouts behind her caused her to momentarily pause, her ears detecting the difference in this voice than the others. Her head turned, long pink hair blowing softly behind her on the cool breeze. "Lightning! Liiightning!" The voice belonged to none other than her little sister, Serah. The smaller pinkette came to a stop when she was in front of her sister, gasping for breath from her impromptu run. "Great job out there, Light!" came the breathless compliment from the still heaving girl. Even though she honestly did not care about her win, Lightning cracked a smile at her beloved sibling. Her sister was too adorable sometimes, even for a cold soldier like her.

"Are you alright, Serah? Maybe you should quit cooking all those foods you love so much; I'm worried you are fixing to fall over from exertion." If anybody had heard the teasing, fond words from the stern knight, they themselves would have had a heart attack. Serah squawked in indignation at the joke. "Light! Are you insinuating that I am _fat_? If so, then you can just forget about me fixing that meal you love so much!" The general chuckled softly to herself, knowing her sister would do no such thing. Her little sister adored her; they were all they had left in the world. Lightning was always afraid that something would come in and snatch up the last person in the world she cared for. It was the reason she scared off all the potential suitors. Nobody could care and protect her little sister like she would.

"Well, since it is later in the day, why don't we go somewhere to eat? We can meet up with Lockhart, Fair and Strife?" Serah's eyes lit up. The only female that inspired admiration in Serah other than Lightning was Tifa Lockhart. The woman was a triple threat; smart, gorgeous and perfectly capable of kicking testosterone-fueled butts. She was also fond of Generals Zack Fair and Cloud Strife. "Yeah! That sounds great!" Lightning led her sister away, heading in the direction of her fellow generals. Unfortunately before they could meet the others, a hulking form placed himself in their way. The huge mass was none other than Snow, the man who was pursuing Serah. The older Farron did not like him; at all. Her scowl could have melted ice, and normally reduced cadets to shivering masses. Snow apparently did not possess the same self-preservation senses that the rest had. He ignored the irate general and focused his dopey grin and blue eyes towards the object of his affections. "Hey, Serah! How are you doing today, besides being the most beautiful girl here?" The words made Serah blush and giggle prettily. Her sister just glared. "Oh, Snow, stop! You are making me blush!" Snow winked, causing the senior pinkette to gag. "That is why I do it; your blush just makes you even prettier. Anyway, I came by to ask if you wanted to accompany me down to the market, ya know, just to hang out. I like..spending time with you." Snow awkwardly scratched the back of his head, his shaggy blonde hair mussing up as he did so. Serah brightened up and looked on the verge of accepting the tentative proposal when Lightning decided to intervene. "Sorry, Villiers. Serah and I are on our way to eat lunch with Fair, Lockhart, and Strife. Maybe some other time." Her words brooked no argument. Serah reluctantly nodded her acquiescence. "I'm sorry, we had already made these plans or I would go…but maybe, tomorrow?" Snow smiled, agreeing immediately with the idea. "That sounds great! I will meet you tomorrow, then. See you later?" Serah returned the smile with her own special one. "I would love nothing more. Goodbye, Snow."

Light watched the lumbering idiot walk away, seething inside. He was blatantly obvious about his intentions with her little sister, and to make matters worse it looked like Serah was falling for him as well. She could not let that happen. If that fool whisked Serah away…she would be alone. That was her biggest fear; being alone for the rest of her life. She was not looking for romance or love, but she could not lose her sister. Serah was the one thing holding Light back from the crippling pain that thinking of her parents brought. Revenge was not even possible. The Pulsian that killed them had been caught; mocked the Cocoonians and showed no remorse for what he had done. The man had killed them because he did not want peace with the people of Cocoon, and the Farrons had been huge advocates of peace and harmony. Sadly, before he could be brought to justice the man slit his own throat, dying with a smirk at his eternal escape.

Prince Noctis, the ruler of Cocoon, wanted to bring the two civilizations together, just like his father wanted. Lightning greatly respected the prince and his counsel, but she would never be friends with the disgusting people. She would never forgive the Pulsians for her loss, even though the people were composed of many different individual tribes and not everyone shared the murderer's views. It mattered not. As long as there were Pulsians, her pain would never ease and forgiveness would never come.


	2. Chapter 2

Lightning and Serah walked towards the three knights they had decided to spend their valued lunch time with. As the pink-haired women grew ever closer to the trio encased in gleaming breastplates, Tifa happened to look up, noticing the arrival. Warm wine-colored irises beamed in their general direction and a large beatific smile bloomed across her sweet face. A hand rose in greeting, garnering attention from the two males accompanying her. Tifa's suitor, Zack Fair, lifted his stunning blue eyes from where they were previously occupied, opening his mouth to shout out a friendly, "There's the reigning champion!" towards the eldest fuchsia-haired warrior.

Lightning furrowed a brow in annoyance of the compliment; she did not want to feel the prying eyes on her as she walked passed. Ignoring the blatant ogling and stares, icy blue eyes resolutely centered on the three people she most respected in the knights' ranks. Zack grinned oafishly at the women as they joined their places at the trio's sides. His gravity-defying black hair blew gently in the breeze, his handsome face alight with mischief and the joy of life. He slung an arm around Tifa, drawing her in against his muscular side. "Well done out there, Farron! That was a hell of a match! Ser Eurich did not know what hit him!" Tifa nodded her head, dark hair fanning around her slighter frame. "Yes, you were quite the picture out there Light; although nobody was really surprised. Eurich is a good knight and a decent enough teacher, but he could never stand toe to toe against you. If you keep winning the Knight Games, the rest of us might as well just retire and leave all the glory to you!"

Serah giggled at her place by her sister's side, looking in adoration at her knighted sibling. "Isn't she just amazing with a blade? It is like watching a dance…only deadlier." Blue eyes mock-glared at the young woman, admonishing her without a word. "It was not all that like everyone seems to think. It was just one battle; the real test will be when the Pulsians come around." Dead silence greeted her words; nobody wanted to say anything that would spiral the pinkette into a fury. All four of them had seen how Lightning got when Pulsians or the Farron elders were mentioned. It was not pretty by any means. Cloud spoke up for the first time, steering the talk away from loaded subjects. "How about we all go for a bite to eat, eh? Lebreau's sounds good right about now."

Lightning turned towards the spiky-haired counterpart of Zack's. The two, although not blood related, we closer than most brothers. Whereas Zack was tall and finely muscled with obsidian hair and eyes that looked like a mirrored copy of the ocean, Cloud was thicker with soft blonde spikes and sky blue orbs. He was also rather more serious than Zack, who was the self-elected jokester of the tightly knit group. Cloud and Tifa had grown up together; Cloud's father had been killed in battle when he was a wee boy, and Tifa's family adopted him into the Lockhart folds. Cloud kept his father's last name out of respect; his mother had died in childbirth. Many thought the two were destined for each other, until Zack Fair sauntered into the picture and wiped Tifa off her feet. Everybody assumed Cloud would be devastated but instead a beautiful young healer named Aerith Gainsborough caught his blue-eyed gaze and he never let go.

"You might want to get that measly excuse for a beard trimmed before we go. I would hate to be seen walking next to you like that." Zack and Serah burst out into loud peels of laughter while Tifa tried gamely to hold her own in. Cloud stroked the beginnings of a light-colored beard gingerly, frowning at his friends' amusement. "Thank you Lightning; I can always count on you to be honest. Man, I thought it made me look more mature and tough. That is what Aerith told me…" Zack was dying at this point, tears streaming down his face in rivulets. "Dude, she told you that because she is too nice to tell you otherwise. She would tell you anything if she thought it would make you happy." Cloud sighed, pouting at the reception his budding facial hair endeavor brought him. "Alright, I will shave later after we eat. But not before. I need a pick me up after all the trauma I just went through…" Tifa shrugged, settling a hand on her best friend's broad shoulder. "Hey, there is a silver lining here. You could be like Ser Eurich right about now!" "Hmmm, fair point. Okay guys, let's go get some grub!"

Zack and Cloud hooted loudly, dragging the girls behind them as they eagerly rushed to the enticing food Lebreau was so popular for. The five companions would bask in the revelries of that moment, enjoying the bond they amicably shared. Teases would be thrown around casually and meager punches would land on many a shoulder. It was nice to have no worries about battles or whether or not a beloved friend would be marching home. Lightning, for the first time in weeks, was able to let herself go and relax. Although she would soon learn the merriment was short-lived, in the here and now she was content.

Miles away, on the outskirts of Cocoon, a tall figure stood silently as they gazed at the bustling activity on the edge of sight. The man withdrew the dark cloak festooned on broad shoulders, letting it flow down halfway to his chest. Tattoos covered the glistening tanned skin, signifying him as a Pulsian hunter. Long raven hair ran effortlessly across his back, a few feathers braided into the silky locks. Dark eyes took in everything with interest, a sneer marring his otherwise handsome face. In a scarred hand the man held a spear, the blade tipped with _Ovaku_, or "the liquid of death" in Pulsian. The hand that was not clutching the weapon of destruction caressed the scar that ran from his left shoulder to his right hip. Calloused hands ran along the puckered pink marring, malicious eyes darkening further as a hoarse cackle burst from his mouth. "It is time for you to pay, Cocoonians. Too long have you stood by and killed my people, taking what you want by force and justifying the slaughter of innocents. No more; one day, one day soon you will all pay for what you have done, for taking my family away from me!" The depraved noises continued from his mouth, ringing out around him while the citizens of Cocoon lay unaware of the evil that would soon befall them.


End file.
